EU representative pulls Bosnian Serb party funds over war crimes fugitive News
EU representative pulls Bosnian Serb party funds over war crimes fugitive

[JURIST] Lord Paddy Ashdown [official profile], the EU High Representative to Bosnia-Herzegovina [official profile] on Thursday confiscated funds from the Serb Democratic Party (SDS) because its founder and wanted war crimes criminal Radovan Karadzic [BBC profile] remains a fugitive. In 2005, the country's main Bosnian Serb party had raised about $121,000 but its assets were frozen and were only to be released if Karadzic was captured and turned over to the war crimes tribunal in The Hague by the end of the year . The funds will be transferred to the State Investigation and Protection Agency and disbursed throughout the budget for various government institutions. SDS officials have called for Karadzic's surrender and are outraged that they would obligated to capture and arrest a war crimes criminal. In December, the chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia [official website, JURIST news archive] expressed her disappointment [JURIST report] over the failure to arrest Karadzic and Ratko Mladic [ICTY case backgrounders], who have been indicted for genocide and other war crimes. Reuters has more.

THIS DAY @ LAW

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The Spanish Crown put the Laws of Burgos into effect on December 27, 1512. These laws governed the relationship of Spanish settlers with the indigenous peoples of the Caribbean. The laws established the encomienda system of labor, promoted conversion to Catholicism, and safeguarded the indigenous peoples from physical abuse.  However, historians argue that the laws were ineffective at protecting the rights of the indigenous population. Learn more from the Library of Congress.

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